University Park is the destination for the Owls’ first road trip of the year, as they have a Friday night matchup against the Penn State Nittany Lions.

Both teams lost their last game, so both will be looking to bounce back with a win. However, Temple’s success against Penn State in recent years hasn’t been all that great. The Owls are 0-3 against Penn State over the last three seasons, losing each game by a four-goal deficit.

Temple began the season with an impressive 4-1 win over Ohio State, but had a hard time keeping pace with No. 2 ranked Maryland in a 5-1 loss the next day.

Despite the loss, Temple did have some bright spots in that game. They were able to keep the game at a 1-1 tie for the majority of the first half. The offense, led by junior forward Amber Youtz, senior forward Lauren Hunt and freshman forward Katie Foran had trouble breaking through Maryland’s defensive setup, but the Owls’ defense was able to hold their own for a good part of the game.

Three goals did get by redshirt-junior goalkeeper Lizzy Millen in the second half, but she made 18 saves by the end of the day, which is no small feat, considering that Maryland was able to put 23 shots on goal and spent a lot of time on the attack.

There wasn’t a lot that went Temple’s way in Sunday’s loss to Maryland, but they’re hoping that what did go right will carry over.

“We know we have the right pieces in place,” head coach Amanda Janney said. “It was a little disappointing seeing that we gave up so many goals in the second half, after having such a great first half with Maryland.”

“We are not quite battle-tested yet,” Janney added. “But an opponent like Penn State will help us get ready for the Big East.”